Keith Jardine gets Strikeforce middleweight title shot

Earlier this week, we mentioned that Strikeforce's first main card event for 2012 is scheduled for January 7, and that the expected main event is Tim Kennedy vs. middleweight champ Luke Rockhold. That turned out to be two thirds true.

MMA Fighting reports that the main event will actually feature Rockhold taking on Keith Jardine, not Kennedy. Jardine's last bouts were a draw with Gegard Mousasi, wins over Aron Lofton and Francisco France in smaller promotions, and then a five-fight losing streak dating back to UFC 96.

Kennedy is 4-1 in his last five fights, with the one loss coming to Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza in a title fight. He has wins over Robbie Lawlor, Melvin Manhoef, Trevor Prangley -- who Jardine lost to -- and Zak Cummings.

Yeah, I don't get it, either. I'm not the only one, as my Twitter timeline exploded with a collective, "Whaaaaa?" when the news hit late last night. Kennedy has lobbied for the title fight for months, but recently told Cagewriter that he doesn't care where he fights, as long as he fights good guys. Perhaps the Strikeforce and UFC gurus have a plan for Kennedy that we're not privy to; otherwise, there is not much logic behind this bout.